Wednesday, February 15, 2012

We used up all of Maddie's first year monthly stickers but we will still try and take a monthly picture in her chair for as long as she is changing so quickly. I can't believe we are already here!

Maddie Rie weighs about 22 lbs. She is wearing mostly 12-18 month clothes unless it's a dress then it's usually much much smaller (she is still in one of her 3 month dresses) because her shoulders are so tiny and I like them short to show off her chubby legs! She is still in size 3 diapers.

Madeleine LOVES to crawl! With as long as it took her to start being mobile, I thought she would be kinda meh about it but she loves it. The girl that we could leave sitting on the bed or the couch because she wouldn't move at 10 months is a busy busy bee now and I can't blink without her being gone. The only speed she knows is super fast! She throws her body forward onto her hands and knees and takes off screaming excitedly. She has little bruises all over her knees and shins and we try and keep her legs covered when she is crawling because they look terrible otherwise. Maddie is super tough though and doesn't cry when she wipes out 99% of the time. It has to be really really bad for her to cry. I have found blood on her and she still hasn't fussed. It's crazy. She has an intense tolerance for pain. It must be a NICU baby thing.

Maddie makes horse and elephant sounds. For her it's mostly just like blowing raspberries without all the spit. Elephants are definitely her favorite animal to listen to and imitate right now.

She is enjoying putting things in shape sorters. It's really cute to watch her try and figure it out.

Maddie is really getting into associations - seeing stuff in a book or hearing you say a word then finding something else around her associated with it.

She says auntie (for Lauren) and Maddie.

Tries to put her clothes on - it's never gonna happen but it sure is cute to watch.

She got sick for the 3rd time in her life with a cold that started on her birthday. It really messed up her good night time sleep habits. I think the antibiotics really messed her tummy up so we will try adding a probiotic with her medicine the next time she is on it.

She is a dancing machine! She sways whenever she hears music she likes. When she is really feeling the need to groove to plays her favorite song (the Alphabet song) on her house radio and goes to town.

Madeleine likes to brush her hair. It's so cute to see how excited it makes her.

She pretends to eat - from her play house fridge, when she sees a berry in a book, etc

Maddie has always loved jewelry and sparkly things and has been taking my earrings out while she nurses for a while now but CiCi got tired of always having to take her necklaces and earrings off so she started telling her she could touch her jewelry but only with one finger instead of grabbing at it. So Maddie grips your index finger and moves it around to touch the jewelry she wants to explore. It's soo cute!!!

Maddie Rie is really into saying no by shaking her head. She has opinions!! Especially about her food. I think she is starting to teethe because she has moments where she will not eat anything that isn't mushy. The child that happily ate her weight in peas, carrots, and turkey doesn't want anything to do with them. It makes me crazy but I think her mouth is just sore. We have figured out that she will eat peanut butter on graham crackers any time of the day or night. So that's been a go to food for especially fussy days.

She loves to throw her balls and chases after them over and over again. She must get this from her daddy.

Maddie is a complete social butterfly. She lunges out of my arms for strangers and acquaintances every day! Who would've thought God would give these two introverts such an outgoing little girl!! We love it!

Maddie is taking real naps!!! Woohoo! She is sleeping usually 3+ hours a day split between 2-3 naps every day. Hallelujah! Now if only she would tell me how long these naps are going to last before she goes to sleep.

Madeleine has tried frozen yogurt twice and loved it both times. Her first try was at a Mexican restaurant. She is such a good little Texan!

Maddie wants to know the names of things in her books and taps on what she is curious about and says "hehh?" and waits for you to answer. She also can identify lots of things in her books if you ask it of her like "Maddie, where is the monkey?"

Maddie thinks she is a total hoot and makes a scrunchy face to show you.

Madeleine peed on Daddy twice this month before getting in the bath. She really has been such a clean (not gross or overly "liquid") baby that it really cracked us up that the first time she peed on anyone she was over a year old. Maddie LOVES her baths. Maddie's bathroom is just steps from her room and mommy typically undresses her while daddy fills the tub. She is so excited to hear the water that as soon as I get her undressed we let her go free to crawl to daddy and then the tub. It's so cute! But she peed on Daddy twice in one week so we are now reevaluating this process!

Maddie is working on doing the moves for the itsy bitsy spider. Her hands pretty much stay around her face and it's so cute!

Reading in the car

Sitting like a big girl!

Trying frozen yogurt

I approve!

I turned around to check on her about 20 minutes into our drive and found this!

Friday, February 3, 2012

For Maddie's birthday party we went with a rainbow theme!! She has brought so much joy into our lives that I could see no better way to express it. Plus when I was starting to think about planning her party we still lived in Indiana (I know I'm a big planner) and I thought January would be filled with lots of white snow like the month she was born. So I thought rainbows would be needed! I had a blast planning her party and working on the decorations and food. I kept seeing the cutest rainbow cakes on pinterest too so I was hooked. Just a note...pinterest is full of liars so be sure and test out your recipes in advance! The cakes turned out great but there was much adapting from the first plan! Thank goodness for my mom and all her help! We had a great mix of family, old friends, and new friends at her party. It was wonderful. We were even able to spend some time outside for a January birthday party! Only in Texas! So here is a ton of photos from her big day!

Maddie's monthly sticker pictures.

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The food and the Maddie shrine can be seen in the background.

Maddie's smash cake.

The cakes for the guests.

Rainbow fruit skewers!!

Opening presents. This was the only present she stayed to open. She wanted to go play with her friends!

Cousin Katy was a great help opening Maddie's presents.

Reading with Alisha.

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Hugging the lion. She LOVES fuzzy furry things!

Getting ready for the cake smashing! This photo cracks me up!

Sugar coma

"I want to hold baby Maddie!"

I really want to know what lies Uncle Jordan was telling Maddie here!

The Richard photo that never happened. You really think all five children were looking forward at the same time? Thanks Aunt Suzi for your photoshop skills.

My super talented friend of forever, Sarah ( http://www.larkinimages.com/ ), took Madeleine's 1 year photos. We went to downtown Richmond. Here are a few! I think if I posted all of my favorites (which is all of them) I might completely crash my computer.